A widely used new blood thinner that is routinely given to heart patients after angioplasty appears in rare cases to trigger a deadly blood disease. The drug, called Plavix, prevents blood clots and has been taken by more than 3 million people worldwide since its introudction two years ago. For …
Sosobala Mbatha, South Africa's most famous traditional healer, will share his knowledge of Zulu indigenous medicine with his counterparts in the us . Mbatha has been invited to New York by American Traditional Healers for a series of meetings during which they hope to pool information. "By collaborating with other …
As part of the 25th anniversary celebrations of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Thailand and China, the two countries have signed an agreement on joint research in the use of herbal medicine to treat cancer and aids . The cooperation will be carried out between the Kunming Institute of …
The scientists of the Central Drug Research Institute of India (CDRI), Lucknow, conducted clinical tests on Memory Plus, a drug which owes its origin to the traditional herb
the innovative attempt to give money in return for the traditional knowledge of the Kani tribals of the Western Ghats as Intellectual Property is now complete. Royalty from the sale of
Although the antibacterial properties of green tea have been known for a long time, an entirely new property of the herb has just been reported by a group of British researchers. I M T Hamilton-Miller and his colleagues from Royal Free Hospital School of Medicine, London, report that extracts of …
The miracle-makers Scientists are only now finding out the Kanis' knowledge of herbal remedies.The most outstanding find so far is arogyapacha. SMELL of burning bamboo. The short and wiry figure of Ayyappan Kani. The elderly man is busy mixing herbs with a strange extraction from a piece of burnt bamboo. …
In 1995, the government's Integrated Tribal Development Project in Nedumangad initiated a scheme in collaboration with TBGRI to help the Kanis grow medicinal plants in their settlements. Under the project, 50 select families received Rs 1,000 each. Reportedly, 20.25 hectares were under cultivation. "Many people successfully cultivated arogyapacha" notes Rajasekharan. …
The benefit sharing scheme for arogyapacha saw hurdles right from the start. On July 22, 1995, the then chief minister of Kerala, A K Antony, was to sign a memorandum of understanding with Arya Vaidya Pharmacy (AVP), marking the technology transfer from the Tropical Botanical Garden and Research Institute (TBGRI). …
"We are now documenting the tribal medical knowledge and details of the medicinal plants that the tribals use," says Vishwanathan Nair, director, KIRTADS. A PhD in tribal medicine, Nair says he refused to publish his thesis as he first wanted to know what the tribals have got. He also fears …
In November 1995, TBGRI sold the formula to Arya Vaidya Pharmacy (AVP) of Coimbatore for a licence fee of Rs 10 lakh to produce the drug for seven years. The licence fee and the 2 per cent royalty on the profits from the formulation was to be shared equally by …
NAGAMMA, 55, is a vaidyar (traditional doctor), who is an expert in curing snakebites. She lives in Keerapakkam village, Chengalpet district, Tamil Nadu. One morning, Chinappa, a snake catcher, was bitten by a large cobra. He was taken to several doctors, but no one could cure him. He was gasping …
Garlic protects against disease-causing micro-organisms. But till recently, no one knew how it performs the germ-killing function. David Mirelman of the Wiezmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel, has discovered that garlic contains a peptide called allicin which attacks proteins rich with amino acids. When the researcher exposed Entamoeba histolytica parasites …
herbal medicines are gradually gaining acceptance in the us. The Food and Drug Administration (fda), recently agreed to allow a British company to test a herbal eczema treatment on people, even though its active ingredient is not known. Till now, fda was only willing to approve trials once the active …
THERE is euphoria at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), the New Delhi-based government institute, over the decision by the us Patent and Trademark Office (US PTO) to withdraw its patent no 5401504 for the use of turmeric powder as a wound-healing agent on August 13. The move …
The Earth's genetic resources of plants and animals exist mainly in the developing South. The Convention on Biological Diversity, which came into force in December 1993, stipulated that if any external party wishes to access these resources it can do so only with the prior consent of the country where …
in the very first instance in India of tribals getting intellectual property right (ipr), the Kani tribe in the agastyar hills in south Kerala has been awarded Rs 5 lakh for an anti-fatigue drug they have been making from a local herb. The scientific name of the herb is Trichopus …
a plant powder reportedly used by the adivasis of Bihar as oral contraceptive, has been confirmed by scientists to have anti-pregnancy effects. A recent report said that the claims of tribal folklore, confirmed by modern scientific techniques, can actually show new ways of family planning. A medical team comprising A …
Thousands of Africans fall prey to malaria every year. But a recent study shows that a Chinese herbal medicine could do wonders for treating cerebral malaria. The medicine called artemether can cure the patient more quickly and with fewer side effects. Earlier, malaria used to be treated with quinine which …
